Background: Negative-pressure wound therapy has been commonly used for treating chronic wounds and recently applied for treatment of traumatic wounds. We investigated the potential hemostatic benefit of negative-pressure wound therapy for control of refractory hemorrhage in a soft tissue wound model in swine.
Methods: Coagulopathy was induced in pigs (n = 38, 36 kg) by hemodilution and hypothermia. Next, a large soft tissue wound (diameter, approximately 20 cm) was created by slicing the gluteus maximus muscle. Free bleeding was allowed for 1 minute, and wounds were then randomly dressed with either laparotomy gauze (G) alone or TraumaPad (TP, a kaolin-coated dressing) alone or in combination with negative pressure (NP, approximately -500 mm Hg). All wounds were sealed with adhesive drapes. Fluid resuscitation was administered and targeted to mean arterial pressure of 60 mm Hg. Pigs were observed for 150 minutes or until death after which tissues were sampled for histologic examination.
Results: Induced coagulopathy as measured by increases in prothrombin time (12%) and activated partial thromboplastin time (22%) and decreases in fibrinogen (48%) were similar in all groups. There were no differences in initial bleeding rates (4.5 mL/kg/min). Dressing the wounds with G or TP produced hemostasis only in one pig (1 of 18 pigs). Addition of NP to these dressings secured hemostasis in 70% (G) and 90% (TP) of animals with average hemostasis time of 34 minutes and 25 minutes, respectively. Blood losses and fluid resuscitation requirements were significantly less, and survival times were significantly longer in NP adjunct groups than in the other groups. Survival rates were 80% (G+NP) and 90% (TP+NP) versus 0% (G) and 10% (TP) in the respective groups. Histologic examination showed similar superficial myofibril damages in all groups.
Conclusion: To our knowledge, the present data provide the first evidence that NP serves as an effective hemostatic adjunct and when combined with standard hemostatic dressing it is able to stop lethal coagulopathic bleeding in large soft tissue wounds.